* VirtueIsWeakness: Discord manages to emotionally break the mane six (right before hypnotizing all but Twilight) by explaining how the virtues represented by the elements of harmony are weaknesses. Specifically, honesty causes others to know things you don't want them to know, laughter hurts the feelings of the one being laughed at, kindness opens yourself up to being abused by others, generosity prevents you from getting the things that you want, loyalty means nothing when you can't be in two places at once and have to choose between two loyalties, and in general harmony is pointless as its own elements lead it to collapse on itself.

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* VillainHasAPoint: Discord is actually right about his explanation to Pinkie Pie: Regardless of whether one is laughing ''with'' somepony or laughing ''at'' somepony, laughter is laughter.* VirtueIsWeakness: Discord manages to emotionally break the mane six (right before hypnotizing all but Twilight) by explaining how the virtues represented by the elements of harmony are weaknesses. Specifically, honesty causes others to know things you don't want them to know, laughter hurts the feelings of the one being laughed at, kindness opens yourself up to being abused by others, others (Discord had to cheat since Fluttershy wasn't giving him the responses he wanted), generosity prevents you from getting the things that you want, loyalty means nothing when you can't be in two places at once and have to choose between two loyalties, and in general harmony is pointless as its own elements lead it to collapse on itself.

* TheDarkTimes: Celestia refers to an era in which Discord ruled and caused endless suffering for Equestria. It is depicted in a stained-glass window as Discord holding ponies by puppet strings over a pit of fire.** Complete with screaming!

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* TheDarkTimes: Celestia refers to an era in which Discord ruled and caused endless suffering for Equestria. It is depicted in a stained-glass window as Discord holding ponies by puppet strings over a pit of fire.** fire. Complete with screaming!

** When Discord first appears in Canterlot Tower, and drifts into the next window, he is leaning on one of the images. He says "It's been quite lonely imprisoned in stone, but you wouldn't know that, would you, because ''I don't turn ponies into stone''!" and then he knocks on the image he's leaning on. Specifically, her head. The image is a picture of Fluttershy.** Fluttershy is the only one of the mane six who Discord ''can't'' corrupt with his words alone. Instead, he has to use magic to brute-force brainwash her.

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** When Discord first appears in Canterlot Tower, and drifts into the next window, he is leaning on one of the images. He says "It's been quite lonely imprisoned in stone, but you wouldn't know that, would you, because ''I don't turn ponies into stone''!" and then he knocks on the image he's leaning on. Specifically, her head. The image is a picture of Fluttershy.** Fluttershy is Fluttershy. She's the only one of the mane six who Discord ''can't'' corrupt with his words alone. Instead, he has to use magic to brute-force brainwash her.

* IdiotBall: Twilight, throughout much of this episode on the next. Despite her friends not acting like themselves at all, she doesn't appear to suspect that her friends are under Discord's spell in any way; she acts like they've just suddenly decided to become {{Jerkass}}es for no apparent reason.** She does, at least originally, cite "stress" as the reason she thinks they're acting up, and tries to tell herself that AJ's lies are just part of her imagination.* IncorruptiblePurePureness: Discord is unsuccessful in his attempts to break Fluttershy, forcing him to simply hypnotize her the old fashioned way.

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* IdiotBall: Twilight, throughout much of this episode on the next. Despite her friends not acting like themselves at all, she doesn't appear to suspect that her friends are under Discord's spell in any way; she acts like they've just suddenly decided to become {{Jerkass}}es for no apparent reason.** reason. She does, at least originally, cite "stress" as the reason she thinks they're acting up, and tries to tell herself that AJ's lies are just part of her imagination.* IncorruptiblePurePureness: Discord is unsuccessful in his attempts to break Fluttershy, forcing him to simply hypnotize her the old fashioned old-fashioned way.

** The end of the episode. Discord has beaten the Mane 6, brainwashed most of them into betraying their elements and still has the Elements of Harmony in his possession. During his final gloat, he opens an inverted umbrella that '''meows''' before a lightning strike.

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** The end of the episode. Discord has beaten the Mane 6, Six, brainwashed most of them into betraying their elements and still has the Elements of Harmony in his possession. During his final gloat, he opens an inverted umbrella that '''meows''' before a lightning strike.

*** Rainbow Dash [[LeeroyJenkins charging at the stained glass window]] may be an allusion to Worf pointing his phaser at the viewscreen when Q's face appears on it in [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS1E1EncounterAtFarpoint "Encounter at Farpoint"]].** Discord's status as [[BewareTheSillyOnes a "silly" acting villain]] with [[RealityWarper reality-warping abilities]] whose method of choice is psychologically attacking the heroines and breaking apart the bond they share may be inspired by Him from ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls'' (which LaurenFaust worked on as well). He even appears as butterflies with his own face on them to tempt the yellow-furred [[NiceGuy Nice Girl]] of the group, something Him did with Bubbles in "All Chalked Up".

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*** Rainbow Dash [[LeeroyJenkins charging at the stained glass window]] may be an allusion to Worf pointing his phaser at the viewscreen when Q's face appears on it in [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS1E1EncounterAtFarpoint "Encounter at Farpoint"]].** Discord's status as [[BewareTheSillyOnes a "silly" acting villain]] with [[RealityWarper reality-warping abilities]] whose method of choice is psychologically attacking the heroines and breaking apart the bond they share may be inspired by Him from ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls'' (which LaurenFaust Creator/LaurenFaust worked on as well). He even appears as butterflies with his own face on them to tempt the yellow-furred [[NiceGuy Nice Girl]] of the group, something Him did with Bubbles in "All Chalked Up".

** The buffaloes appearing from time to time are doing the [[IncrediblyLamePun Shuffle Off to Buffalo]].* WeUsedToBeFriends: The conversation between the mane six themselves in their friendship's dark future that Discord shows to Applejack sums this up. Also see SelfFulfillingProphecy.

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** The buffaloes appearing from time to time are doing the [[IncrediblyLamePun Shuffle "Shuffle Off to Buffalo]].Buffalo".* WeUsedToBeFriends: The conversation between the mane six Mane Six themselves in their friendship's dark future that Discord shows to Applejack sums this up. Also see SelfFulfillingProphecy.

-->'''Apple Bloom:''' Cool, if you were actually victoryful at somethin'.-->'''Sweetie Belle:''' That's not a word!-->'''Scootaloo:''' What are you, a dictionary?

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-->'''Apple Bloom:''' Cool, if you were actually victoryful at somethin'.-->'''Sweetie somethin'.\\'''Sweetie Belle:''' That's not a word!-->'''Scootaloo:''' word!\\'''Scootaloo:''' What are you, a dictionary?

* YouHaveNoChanceToSurvive: Discord corrupts Rainbow Dash with the SadisticChoice of either taking her wings and leaving the game (to save her DoomedHometown) or "carry on aimlessly wandering this maze. Your choice."

* [[EtTuBrute Et Tu, Friends?]]: From the corrupted TrueCompanions' twisted point of view, they believed that they were betrayed by their friends when in reality, they were brainwashed by Discord into doing so. In general, Twilight herself gets this whenever she finds her friends, one by one, acting different from themselves.

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* [[EtTuBrute Et Tu, Friends?]]: EtTuBrute: From the corrupted TrueCompanions' twisted point of view, they believed that they were betrayed by their friends when in reality, they were brainwashed by Discord into doing so. In general, Twilight herself gets this whenever she finds her friends, one by one, acting different from themselves.

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